Move to Increase School Year

Governor Jay Nixon announced on Friday he wants Missouri school children to spend more time in the classroom.Nixon wants to extend Missouri’s minimum school year from 174 days to 180 days. “I think there are only three other states that have less school days than Missouri,” Senator David Pearce said, “Missouri would certainly be toward the bottom of the list for number of school days.”Governor Nixon also called for increased funding for preschool education programs. He says his proposed budget will call for additional funding for the A+ scholarship program.According to Pearce, Nixon will go into more detail on the changes in his State of the State Address on January 28.